U.S. Could Give Every Poor American $20K With The Money Spent On Welfare Last Year

(CNSNews.com) – Former Republican vice presidential candidate Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said Tuesday that over a trillion dollars was spent on welfare programs last year, and for that amount, “you could give every single poor American a check for $20,000.”

“Just last year, total federal and state spending on means-tested programs came to over one trillion dollars. What does that mean in practical terms? For that amount of money, you could give every single poor American a check for $20,000 – every man, woman and child,” said Ryan in a speech at the Jack Kemp Award ceremony.